Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT)

DCCT shows intensive therapy better than conventional.

An HbA1c value of 7% reduced the risk of long-term eye, kidney and nerve complications by approximately 60%.

Results of Type 1 Diabetes Clinical Trial

Known as the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT), this landmark trial showed the superiority of intensive blood glucose management in controlling blood glucose and reducing the incidence of complications in type 1 diabetes.

The DCCT – which included more than 1,400 participants — demonstrated that intensive therapy was better than the conventional therapy used at that time. Conventional therapy relied on one or two fixed doses of insulin that did not vary with meals.

The intensively managed participants maintained average blood glucose values of about 150 mg/dl. Better yet, the DCCT also demonstrated that maintaining an HbA1c value of around 7% reduced the risk of long-term eye, kidney and nerve complications by approximately 60%:

A follow-up of DCCT participants further showed that a period of sustained glucose control helps to protect against long term eye, kidney and nerve complications as well as heart disease or atherosclerosis – even many years later. These benefits occurred despite less intensive blood sugar control after the DCCT study ended.